Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church celebrates Divine Liturgy on the Sunday of Orthodoxy at the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow

On 25 February 2018, the Sunday of Orthodoxy, the commemoration day of the Iberian icon of the Mother of God and of St. Alexius, Metropolitan of Kiev, Moscow and All Russia the Wonderworker, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia celebrated the Liturgy of St Basil the Great and the Office of the Triumph of Orthodoxy at the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow.

Concelebrating with His Holiness were an assembly of hierarchs and clergymen of the Russian Orthodox Church, including Metropolitan Juvenaly of Krutitsy and Kolomna and Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk as well as representatives of the Local Orthodox Churches to the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia: Metropolitan Niphon of Philipopolis (Orthodox Church of Antioch), Bishop Antonije of Moravica (Serbian Orthodox Church), Archimandrite Feoktist (Dimitrov) (Bulgarian Orthodox Church), Archimandrite Seraphim (Shemyatovsky) (Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia) and Archpriest Daniel Andrejuk (Orthodox Church in America).

Among those who attended the service were Ambassadors Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Bulgaria, Romania, Macedonia, the Hellenic Republic and Republic of Cyprus.

Patriarchal choir of the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour conducted by Iliya Tolkachev sang liturgical hymns.

The divine service was broadcast live by Souyz TV channel.

After the Litany of Fervent Supplication the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church said a prayer for peace in Ukraine.

Prayers for the rest of the souls of Patriarchs Alexy I and Alexy II and of the newly departed Archbishop Grigory of Mozhaisk were offered up at the Litany for the Dead.

The Office of the Triumph of Orthodoxy followed the Liturgy. To conclude the celebrations, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill addressed his flock with a Primatial homily, saying in particular:

“I congratulate all of you in the Feast of the Triumph of Orthodoxy instituted in the 9th century, fifty years after the 7th Ecumenical Council…

“On the day of the feast we commemorate our new martyrs and confessors on particular. Their suffering was greater than that of other Christians throughout history. Today we commemorated our fathers and grandfathers, our renowned bishops, clerics and laypersons who with no fear of death had preserved the priceless treasure of Orthodoxy for us. It is hard to say what could have happened with Orthodoxy in the world had it survived in Russia…

“We beseech God to be merciful to the whole Orthodox Church, to the Russian Orthodox Church and our people and help us to go through all the trials to which the faith of people is subjected today so that our generation could uphold the faith and pass it to the next generations. We do believe that the faith in Christ will live to the end of the ages and that the faithful will courageously will to affirm Orthodoxy which is the true light for the world and the salvation for all people.”